She might be an unlikely actress but a screen diva she undoubtedly is.
And so on Sunday evening when a select group of guests beheld her talent on the big screen, it became obvious, and upliftingly so, that Mrs Ibukun Awosika, the successful entrepreneur and Chairman of First Bank Plc’s Board of Directors, is more than a corporate amazon closing deals and conquering territories.
She’s also a diva with enormous acting talent that can make Hollywood casting agents come looking for her.
The multi-talented woman was finally unveiled on Sunday evening as the surprise guest actor in Kunle Afolayan’s latest film, Citation, a two-hour, three-country-location thriller that seeks to give voice to victims of sexual assault in higher institutions.
Venue of the screening was the Vice-chancellor’s lodge at the staff quarters of the sprawling Obafemi Awolowo University, incidentally where the film was shot in part in January, and intriguingly where Awosika graduated from several decades ago.
Although she was not physically present at Sunday’s screening, her pre-recorded goodwill message to the gathering highlighted her joy in making her acting debut in a film that speaks to the growing malaise of sex-for-grades in many higher institutions.
For a university that was in the eye of the storm in 2018 over a damning case of sexual assault, which eventually led to the accused don being dismissed and was later jailed, OAU undoubtedly serves as an ideal location for this star-studded film that casts Haitian-born Hollywood star, Jimmy Jean-lewis as lead character while featuring Nigerian stars like Joke Sylva, Ini Edo, Gabriel Afolayan, Sadiq Daba, Wole Olowomojuore, Adjitey Anang and Yomi Fash-Lanso among others, with Temi Otedola playing the lead female role as Moremi.
It was a happy VC, Prof. Eyitope Ogunbodede together with his wife, who hosted a beautiful evening of dinner and film screening at the open lawn in front of their lodge.
“We are happy that our university has been given the honour to see this film first,” he told the gathering of about 70 intellectuals from various departments who were there to see the film.
“This important film was largely shot in our campus at the beginning of the year with our full support. We are happy that it has turned out well as a work of art with timeless message that should resonate all over university campuses.”
The screening was also an opportunity for its Director and Producer, Kunle Afolayan and his team to mingle with scholars and other prominent members of the Great Ife intelligentsia.
He highlighted the reason for the choice of OAU as the main location and Awosika as the surprise cast member.
“Why OAU? Well, not only was Citation shot at the University, but our surprise cast is an alumnus of the school.
“Playing the role of the university faculty dean, heading the Senate hearing panel on Moremi (Temi Otedola) and Lucien (Jimmy-Jean Louis), we present Dr. (Mrs) Ibukun Awosika!”
According to him, Awosika’s initiatives for change and women empowerment in Africa made her choice irresistible in casting her for the role.
On the location for Sunday’s private screening, Afolayan said he chose to hold the maiden screening at the OAU in recognition of the institution’s relentless battle against sexual harassment.
“This we executed through our 2020 CSR agenda, by showcasing Citation first at Obafemi Awolowo University – the very location the production was shot; a university highly notable for its zero-tolerance to sexual harassment. This is evident in its Anti-Sexual Harassment policy (ASH Policy).”
Written Tunde Babalola, ‘Citation’ narrates the ordeals of a female post-graduate student who has been a victim of sexual harassment.
While the film explores the prevalence of sexual harassment in universities, it also dwells on how to address such situations in the university.
“Truth be told, a lot of ladies in the universities are faced with this dilemma… but the question is, what should they do in such a scenario? This birthed our advocacy initiative – to empower and educate females on ways they can tackle sexual based crimes in the University,” Afolayan said.
Shot in Nigeria, Senegal and Cape Verde, Citation is expected to be premiered in Lagos and Dakar later this year.
